Pakistan: "back to the stone age"

LE

The US threatened to bomb Pakistan "back to the stone age" unless it joined the fight against al-Qaeda, President Pervez Musharraf has said.

General Musharraf said the warning was delivered by former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage to Pakistan's intelligence director.
...
The Pakistani president said that, following the attacks of 11 September 2001, the US made some "ludicrous" demands of Pakistan.

"The intelligence director told me that Mr Armitage said, 'Be prepared to be bombed. Be prepared to go back to the Stone Age'," he said.

LE

ADC

'There is much to learn from the British: their reticence about disclosing details, their clear expertise in human intelligence, their non-hysterical reaction to very real threats. Many Americans may have an inferiority complex about things British -- the refinement, the style and, of course, those accents' -

LE

Look at the dates on this - shortly after 11 Sep 01. Remember how the world was then? So the spams played diplomatic hardball with a military dictatorship that has continually shielded (unofficially of course) the extremists supporting Al Qaeda, and forced them to declare their allegiance. "With us or against us".

Whilst I'm no fan of GWB's continuing world tour and our role as the supporting act, I'm not going to fake indignation over US threatening the Pakistanis, just to take cheap shots at the spams.

As an after thought: "Ludicrous demands"? What, like stop exporting terror, you're supposed to be on our side?

"I do not resent criticism, even when for the sake of emphasis, it parts for the time with reality" WSC

RIP

I remember thinking at the time what threats were made for Pakistan to be so co-operative towards the US. But lets face it any country would have acted the same given the scale of the attack on the US. Is anyone really surprised!

"Remember that you are an Englishman, and have consequently won first prize in the lottery of life".

LE

But they could have been brought on-sde more subtly: I understand that at the same time the Brits were trying to lure Musharraf on side, with a rather generous offer of a semi in Harrow Weald... and... wait till you get this... permission to bring his direct family with him too.

ADC

Just heared an extensive interveiw with Armitage about this subject, he denies it very convincingly, the bloke he was alledged to have said it to was sacked as a pro talib ISI drone a very weeks after. I believe Armitage, this is simply spin to sell the book.

'There is much to learn from the British: their reticence about disclosing details, their clear expertise in human intelligence, their non-hysterical reaction to very real threats. Many Americans may have an inferiority complex about things British -- the refinement, the style and, of course, those accents' -

LE

Just heared an extensive interveiw with Armitage about this subject, he denies it very convincingly, the bloke he was alledged to have said it to was sacked as a pro talib ISI drone a very weeks after. I believe Armitage, this is simply spin to sell the book.

LE

Just heared an extensive interveiw with Armitage about this subject, he denies it very convincingly, the bloke he was alledged to have said it to was sacked as a pro talib ISI drone a very weeks after. I believe Armitage, this is simply spin to sell the book.